After seven rounds each throughout Australia in 2010 the Honda Grom's and Girls on the Gas National Competitions come to a head this weekend as all state winners make their way to a rain soaked Victoria for their respective Final Showdowns.
The weekend starts off at the Outtrim circuit situated just out of Korumburra in the Gippsland region of Victoria for the 'Girls on the Gas' Competition.
Winner of the last two years in a row Jess Moore from Kalgoorlie, Western Australia comes in as hot favourite to win her third crown in as many years aboard her Honda CRF 250R but she will have her hands full against some stiff interstate competition.
Here is a quick preview of our competitors and how they shape up heading into this weekends event:
Jess Moore- Kalgoorlie, WA- Honda CRF 250R, 16yrs old
Strengths- Jess is becoming one of the best women racers in the country with her smooth style and strength on the bike. Very determined with a good fitness base.
Sarah Stubbs- Cranbourne, Vic- Honda CRF 250R, 15yrs old
Strengths- Sarah could be the dark horse for this competition. One of the best styles going around and knows the Outtrim circuit like the back of her hand.
Krystal Sowten- Gladstone, Qld- Honda CRF250R, 14yrs old
Strengths- Krystal is on a massive improvement curve at the moment and should represent Queensland well. She rarely makes a mistake on the track.
Jacqui Gibbs- Meningie, SA- Honda CRF 250R, 16yrs old
Strengths- Jackie is a little bit small for the big bike but isn't scared to let it all hang out. She rides a little bit on the ragged edge but has a big heart and can get around very fast.
Tayla Jones- NSW- KTM 250
Strengths- Very smooth and calculated but not scared to jump big jumps. Should feature up there in the points if things go her way.
Mia Hewitt- NT- Darwin, Honda CRF250R, 15yrs old
Strengths- Mia is relatively new to the sport but very keen to keep improving and gain some valuable experience while she is down here in Victoria.
The girls will go head to head this Saturday morning at the Outtrim circuit, facing off in all four categories including the lap time and technique categories on the bike while the public speaking module and shuttle run beep test will be the 'off bike' categories.
Starting first thing Sunday morning the Honda Grom's on the Gas junior competition will tackle the exact same format that the girls did the day prior only this time they will be competing on the sandy Rosebud circuit south of Melbourne.
Here is a quick preview of our competitors:
Joseph Murphy- Perth, WA- Honda CRF 250R- 15yrs old
Strengths- Joseph finished a close second last year to Mitch Budd and is extremely comfortable in the deep sand coming from WA. He will be hard to beat this year!
BJ Currie- Maffra, Vic- Honda CRF 250R- 15yrs old
Strengths- BJ is a top level racer but is an unknown quantity in the deep sand. He should perform well on the day.
Jordan Bird- Queensland- Suzuki RMX250- 15yrs old
Strengths- A rider who is not scared to let it all hang out and rides on the ragged edge. Great speed and terrific fitness!
Kurt Waterman- Palmer, SA- Honda CRF250R- 15yrs old
Strengths- Kurt is a massive kid. Very tall, lean and strong and makes the 250 look small. He has been doing well in the recent junior SuperX series and should go into this event favourite, if he keeps it on two wheels‰Û_
Todd Jarratt- Hay, NSW- Honda 150R- 15yrs old
Strengths- Todd is a good kid and rides the smaller bike like it is on rails but will need to be on his A game to be up there with the top guys in the sand. He may decide to ride his Kawasaki 250F that he won the state leg on.
Daniel Pickering- Darwin, NT- Honda CRF250R- 15yrs old
Strengths- Daniel has all the ingredients on the bike. Smooth style and plenty of speed!
The big winner of both the Honda Girls on the Gas and Honda Grom's on the Gas competitions will secure themselves a terrific bunch of sponsors for the 2011 season that would make any aspiring young racer proud. They consist of:
Honda MPE
Fox Clothing
Fuchs Silkolene Oils
Dirt Action Magazine
MXTV
Main Photo: 2009 State winners of the Girls on the Gas with judges Lee Hogan, Jades Oates and Mick Sinclair from Fox.
